


Better safe than sorry (but how sorry are you willing to be?)

by Bluestpaw



Series: Hurt/Comfort [1]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Episode: s03 Timetagger, Episode: s03 Timetagger Spoilers, F/M, Identity Reveal, Marriage Proposal, Post-Hawk Moth Defeat, Secret Identity, They're not fun though, new villains, they're not important though, this is basically 2k words of angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-04
Updated: 2020-10-04
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:20:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,432
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26821288
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bluestpaw/pseuds/Bluestpaw
Summary: „Oh! You and her, it’s always more like...“ And then, Bunnyx started mumbling nonesense and Chat Noir laughed it off, because really, the future wasn’t set in stone yet.He shouldn’t have laughed it off.-They had promised each other to reveal themselves after Hawkmoth's defeat, but then another villain shows up just a tad too early and maybe,  Bunnyx description of their relationship back in Time Tagger was a bit more accurate than Chat Noir had ever imagined.Or had wanted.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Series: Hurt/Comfort [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1956280
Comments: 12
Kudos: 116





	Better safe than sorry (but how sorry are you willing to be?)

.o.O.o.

Better safe than sorry (but how sorry are you willing to be?)

* * *

They had agreed to meet at the street they first met on, one week after defeating Hawkmoth. They had made that plan a year ago – well, Chat had and Ladybug had agreed, smiling at him fondly – and Chat had dreamed of that day every single night after and had imagined it in all his splendor.

And then he had to cancel because Gabriel Agreste had just been arrested for terrorizing Paris for two whole years and Chat wasn't ready yet to tell Ladybug that they had fought his own father.

Ladybug had agreed.

> “ _Getting cold feet, huh? Well, you do have a lot to live up to, after all the things you said...”, she said, smirking at him, before her expression morphed into something more tender and she added, her voice all soft and warm:”Just tell me once you’re ready, kitty. There’s no reason to hurry – I’m nervous too.”_

And then her Miraculous had beeped and she had left.

Chat was ready a month later. They still planned to meet on that street. They still planned to waer the clothes they had decided on a year prior. She’d wear the scarf he had gifted her with and he’d wear the matching hat. They had gotten them each other for Christmas and it had been hilarious because they hadn’t planed for it to match. In fact, Chat had gotten his scarf from Marinette, but she had said the fabric was pretty trendy right now and that she was busy with making a hat for someone and wouldn’t be able to do any elaborate designs.

They had laughed about it and moved on. Chat had never worn his hat anywhere other than inside the house (where he had worn it in secret for _months_ ) because he didn’t want to accidentally reveal himself.

And now he would do it on _purpose_.

He was five minutes away from their agreed upon meeting point when the earth started shaking and he got a call from Ladybug.

“There’s a new villain in Paris, Chat! At the Champs-Élysées!”

“But-But we defeated Hawkmoth!”

“It’s no Akuma – I honestly don’t know what it is! But, uh, can we have a rain check on that meeting? I need you right here, quickly!”

Chat had agreed, of course. Duty came first. And after an exhausting battle – they hadn’t defeated this villain, because he didn’t use minions, but they had gotten _close_ – he looked to Ladybug and smiled because, really, who needed a meeting point? All he needed her to say was…

“Chat, I-maybe we shouldn’t reveal ourselves to each other yet.”

His smile fell. That wasn’t what Chat needed her to say. Far from it, in fact.

“It’s just...there’s a new villain and who knows what they’ll do or what they’re planning! We-It’s the same as with Hawkmoth and-it-it just isn’t safe, yet. I know I promised, Chat but I just...”

“It’s fine”, Chat interrupted her, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder and smiling at her from eyes that were too bright to be honest.

“It’s fine. I understand.”

It wasn’t fine. He didn’t understand. But this was his lady and he’d follow her to the end of the world.

Or time.

.

.o.O.o.

.

A week after the disaster that was their supposed reveal, Adrien moved away and it hurt – badly – at first. Marinette didn’t know how many ice cream and wine dates she had had with Alya, but at some point her best friend had had enough and dragged her to a bar. And even though Marinette didn’t find true love that night, she did find a man trying to flirt with her by using cheap pick-up lines and puns and Marinette had to think of Chat and that thought warmed her heart until her cheeks blushed.

And Marinette realized that, maybe, moving on wasn’t as hard as she had thought.

That evening on patrol, when Marinette was wondering whether she should just _confess_ or if he’d hold a grudge against her for constantly rejecting him, Chat popped from his Voyage – he had moved away and Marinette couldn’t imagine anyone else as her partner – and started gushing to her about this girl he had met today and how _amazing_ she was and that he _knew_ he was in love and all Marinette could think was ”Oh. So that’s how true heartbreak feels.”

. O .

Adrien moved back to Paris eventually. And Marinette found herself lost in his green eyes once more. Chat moved back to Paris too and his relationship didn’t last. He and his girlfriend had never been that close anyway.

And after a month or so he felt his heart soar every time Ladybug smiled at him or called him “Kitty” and he knew he had never truly gotten over her, but then he heard Ladybug gush about her first love and he wondered whether he had imagined all the blushes and lovesick glances she had sent him over the course of months.

. O .

Three months later Adrien’s father died in prison and he had to take over the company and he felt himself missing Marinette more than ever. She had been there every single step of the way, not asking for anything but for him to try. She didn’t care that his father had been Hawkmoth. He knew Alya and Nino tried to not see the former villain in him, but Adrien could always see the apprehension in their eyes when he mourned his father and he couldn’t blame them, because that man had made their life hell for years.

It was when Marinette showed him a new design of hers, her eyes sparkling with passion, that Adrien felt his heart beat louder and louder until it seemed to burst from his chest and he realized he was in love again. And that evening, Marinette came in, clutching the arm of a man she introduced to him as her new boyfriend and Adrien had never tasted bitterness quite so awful in his entire life.

. O .

A new villain attacked Paris. Ladybug postponed their reveal once more.

. O .

Adrien met someone new. She told him, after a month of dating, that it wouldn’t work.

> _“It just feels like you don’t love me. Not really, anyway. Not the way I want you to, not with all your heart and I-I can’t do this.”_

Adrien cried all night long and then Ladybug soothed Chat’s heartache with soft touches and warm smiles and he realized that, of course, he could never truly love anyone, because his partner kept stealing parts of his heart. But his partner was also still gushing about how _amazing_ her boyfriend was, so Chat didn’t allow his thoughts to wander.

. O .

He found someone new. Ladybug broke up with her boyfriend. He broke up with his own and asked Marinette out and she told him she was still recovering from her previous relationship. He met someone new again and so did Ladybug and it almost felt like he could be happy, but really, he wasn’t.

It was when yet another villain appeared and Ladybug told them, without hesitation, to _fuck off_ that Chat felt himself smile and he hated himself for it because that woman? That woman was going to break his heart.

.

.o.O.o.

.

Everything comes full-circle eventually. And they had always known that Hawkmoth would re-appear – from the moment that they hadn’t been able to find the Butterfly Miraculous in Gabriel Agreste’s belongings and from when, years earlier, Bunnyx had told them as much herself.

At least they knew it couldn’t be his father this time and neither could it be her parents, because they had died a year ago. She had asked him out back then and he had been surprised and then he had found out why and had stopped her – he knew she loved him. But not in that moment because in that moment she just craved _someone_ and he knew he was hurting too much already.

Chat’s heart broke when they fought the first Akuma this new Hawkmoth had sent out. Because he remembered “Time Tagger”, remembered the time when he had been younger – when he had wanted nothing more than to know his bug’s identity (they didn’t plan any reveal anymore – they know they’d get interrupted anyway, that there was always another villain out there, waiting to be defeated) and had wanted a future with her. He remembered what Bunnyx told them and he hated himself for being so naive.

He knew he wasn’t in love with Ladybug right now. He had met a boy not too long ago and they got along _great_ – but he knew it wouldn’t last. It never did. He’d always find himself drawn back to his first love, to his lady, his bug and he was sick of it.

Maybe it was time to skip a step. And thus, as they waited for Minibug to do her part, Chat glanced at his partner for a second, before starring into the sunset once more.

His mind was made up.

“Marry me”, he said.

He wasn't looking at her, wasn’t on one knee, proposing to her. He hadn’t planned this, hadn't bought a ring – it was just a thought he had had. Not in the way he had thought about it before – with a lovesick heart and starry eyes – but with the simple clarity that this – this was what he life would be like for him. And that, if it weren’t for her, he could never, ever, truly love someone.

Ladybug let out a surprised squeal and Chat grinned because, yep, that was his bug, right there.

“W-W-What yo dou mean-do you mean! Do you mean!”

“Marry me”, he repeated.

Ladybug stared at him, mouth agape and his heart melted at the absolute vision that she was.

“But...”

She didn’t get the chance to answer, because Time Tagger appeared at that moment and they had a job to do.

But every villain was defeated eventually.

They had long outgrown the need to flee to safety before their timers run out – so Chat didn’t have to wait to talk to Ladybug. There were no chimneys or walls separating them and he could see how confused she was. But she was blushing too and he got giddy with excitement.

Maybe this time. Maybe this time, they could-they could finally be happy.

“Chat, about what you said earlier...”

“Marry me. I meant it.”

Ladybug didn’t answer directly. In fact, she simply stared at him and he could see his heart break in her eyes because _hers was breaking too_ and then she averted them and so did he.

“We-We can’t”, she eventually said and it was barely more than a whisper and Chat _hated_ those words. They could save Paris time and time again, could overcome every obstacle – but they couldn’t properly love.

It just wasn’t fair.

“There’s going to be another Akuma and another and another one after that and then we...”

“So what? We defeated him, didn’t we?”

He sounded harsher than he had intended to but she had told him those exact words too often already and he was sick of it.

“We don’t know what will happen afterwards, Chat. It’s just too risky! There might be another villain...

“...and another and another and another!”, Chat interrupted her, again, because if he didn't speak up now he'd tell her it was fine and he understood _although heit wasn't fine and he didn't understand._

“I know. I know! That! And-And I’m-I’m sick of it!”

And then Chat started sobbing because it _just wasn’t fair._ He had never wanted this. Never!

“Chat...”

Her voice was soft and filled with sympathy and he _didn’t want it_.

“I’m sick of falling for you time and time and _time_ again! I’m sick of getting my heart broken over and over again by my _best friend_ because of a duty we never even got to choose! We don’t need to reveal us to each other! We don’t need to say each others name, you don’t even have to marry me! But just-I want you to be mine” And I want to be _yours._ God, I want to be yours...”

And then he started sobbing harder and harder until he couldn't stand anymore and he fell to his knees, because this _just wasn’t fair._

He had never chosen to love her. He never had and yet, here he was, at her mercy again, _knowing_ she’d break his heart once more, his heart that was barely held together by empty promises and cherished memories and soft smiles and warm touches, and he hated himself for being so _weak._

And then he felt warm arms surround him and, after a minute or two, he heard her whisper:”Marinette Dupain-Cheng.”

“...What?”

“My name. It’s Marinette Dupain-Cheng.”

Marinette leaned back and smiled at him and Chat could see that her eyes were swimming with tears as well and he was so out of it, he didn’t fully register what was going on for a whole ten seconds.

“I’m 26 years old and I’m a fashion designer. I like to bake in my free time and I want three kids and a hamster and-and I just realized you already know all of that, don’t you?”

And Chat? Chat started laughing and pulled her closer again, because yes, _yes,_ he knew.

“My name is Adrien Agreste. My father was the first Hawkmoth and the first villain we ever defeated and a very good friend of mine once made an entire fashion line inspired by her love for me.”

And then he looked up at her and the mask was gone and he saw tears streaming down her face, _Marinette’s face_ , before she buried it in his shoulder.

“God, we really did waste a lot of time, didn’t we?”

“Great, then lets not waste any more”, Chat answered:“Marry me.”

And Marinette laughed and said “No” but asked him out on a date anyway and a year later she did say “Yes” when he asked her again.

.

.o.O.o.

.

Eventually, they caught Lila and Ladybug wasn’t able to stop Chat from telling the new Hawkmoth that she had been the reason why the superhero duo had finally gotten together. And then he swooped in and kissed Ladybug in front of the entire crowd to the cheers of everyone that was present because, _of course_ , Marinette had been reluctant of telling Paris that they were dating.

But sometimes, one shouldn’t be sorry at all.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

> I am supposed to work on a different oneshot. But they talk about reveals there too and then I got this idea and then I wrote 2k words in an hour or so.
> 
> Here you go. I hope you enjoyed and I'd love to hear some feedback!
> 
> Read you later! Bluestpaw


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